Leaders call for calm a day after marches, protests erupt in Olympia following police shooting

OLYMPIA -- City officials in Olympia are calling for calm, a day after protests -- including minor violent eruptions -- broke out in the capitol city in response to two young men shot by a police officer.

An independent investigation has been launched after the police officer shot two brothers who allegedly attacked him with a skateboard after he stopped them for an attempted shoplifting incident. Protests broke out a short time after the shooting, driven from talks of racial inequality with policing.

While police say there’s no indication that race played a factor in the shooting, the two wounded brothers, 21-year-old Bryson Chaplin and 23-year-old Andre Thompson, are black and the Olympia police officer is white.

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According to police, several incidents -- including some not related to the shooting -- occurred in the downtown area Thursday night. Police said there was a fight outside of a couple of downtown bars.

Around 12 a.m., a crowd of about 30 gathered in front of City hall, throwing bottles and trash cans at the building.  Protesters broke the windows of a few downtown businesses.

Seattle Times reporters caught some of the uproar on video.



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No one was hurt in the nighttime melee. However, someone threw a flare into a cop car causing slight damage. At around 12:30 a.m., police used flash bangs to disperse the crowd. No arrests were made.

The protests were separate of a peaceful march and rally in downtown around 6 p.m. City officials thanked residents for showing, for the most part, respect at the protests and gatherings.

"Thank you community for last night's respectful gatherings and dialogue," city officials said on the city website.

Police and city leaders are meeting at 9 a.m. to discuss the latest updates on the shooting. It is unclear when officials will again update the public.

Olympia Police Chief Ronnie Roberts and Olympia Mayor Stephen Buxbaum called for calm Thursday.

“Olympia is a community that cares deeply about social justice,” Roberts said. “It’s important that we stand together as a community during the investigation.”

Police received calls of an assault around  12:52 a.m. Thursday at a Safeway grocery store near Cooper Point Road NW and 14th Avenue NW. Officers arrived at the store, Roberts said, and learned that two young black men carrying skateboards attempted to steal a case of beer. When they were confronted by store employees, the young men allegedly threw the beer at the employees and ran out of the store.

At 1:14 a.m., 35-year-old police officer Ryan Donald, a three-year veteran of the force, radioed other officers to report he had encountered two men matching the suspects’ description. About two minutes later, at 1:16 a.m., Donald radioed in that he fired his weapon and the two men were shot.

Both brothers were taken to the hospital. Chaplin, the younger brother, was in critical condition but updated to serious Friday. Thompson is in serious condition, police said. The officer was not hurt.

It’s what happened between those two minutes after the officer radioed he had spotted the suspects and before he radioed again to report shots fired that remain largely in question, Roberts said.

According to a preliminary investigation, Donald said he was assaulted by the men at the rear of the patrol car with a skateboard. Donald then fired his gun and hit one of the men, Roberts said, and the two brothers ran into a nearby treeline.

The brothers emerged from the woods seconds later, Roberts said, and Donald fired his weapon multiple times. It is unknown if a second confrontation between Donald and the brothers occurred, Roberts said.

Following the shooting, the Thurston County Critical Incident Team — composed of multiple different law enforcement agencies — began investigating the shooting.

Roberts said there was no indication that race played a factor in the shooting.

The city of Olympia set up a website to keep people informed about the latest updates, as well as release audio and video recordings as they become available. That site is here.